LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — On Wednesday, Mayor Frank Scott, Jr. announced that he has ordered mandatory overtime for employees of the Little Rock Public Works and Fleet department so that they can address the issues surrounding yard waste pickup in some Little Rock neighborhoods.
The overtime directive follows the Little Rock board's decision from last week where they voted on a one-time use of the contingency funds to buy five new garbage trucks.
By taking both of those measures, the city will be able to work toward eliminating any future delays when it comes to the collection of yard waste.
The recent suspension of yard waste pickup in some areas was due to mechanical problems with some of the garbage trucks. They were delayed due to the available trucks being used to pick up day-to-day trash.
“Our Public Works and Fleet departments have done excellent work to maintain trash pickup schedules despite issues with trucks that were beyond their control. Unfortunately, they’ve had to reprioritize yard waste collection because of that,” Mayor Scott said. “New trucks are on the way, and schedules will be back to normal in a few weeks. Until then, we are authorizing seven-day-a-week, mandatory overtime until we catch up on yard waste collection.”
The new garbage trucks are expected to be delivered in about 30-45 days, and the city plans to buy another two trucks in late September.
Trash pick-up in Little Rock is funded by monthly fees charged to residential customers.
However, it is important to note that the purchases for both the new trucks and overtime pay will not be impacting residents.
“It is our commitment to Little Rock residents to provide the quality City services they pay for and deserve,” Mayor Scott said. “We are taking care of this issue, and we are focused on ensuring we have the resources and vehicles we need to avoid delays like this in the future.”
Anyone who is experiencing delays in their yard waste being picked up is urged to call 311 or reach out through the 311 app on their website.
